Mashariki Lawson-Cook

Mashariki Lawson-Cook

Mashariki publicly acknowledged her non-belief in religion and the supernatural in 2012, when she joined the freethought community by becoming a member of the Sacramento Freethinkers, Atheists and Non-believers (SacFAN) meetup group. She became an active member of that growing community through a variety of volunteer activities such as:• SacFAN Adopt-A-Highway project• 2013 participant in the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s California billboard campaign• Class Volunteer at Sacramento County Juvenile Hall (assisted in leading a class developed to promote the idea of freethinking, as an alternative to the religious narratives currently offered to the young, female, Juvenile Hall residents)• 2015 panelist at the Southwest Secular Student Conference• Current Volunteer Coordinator for the annual California Freethought Day Festival• Current Reason Center Board Member and Treasurer• Co-Founder of the Black Humanists and Non-believers of Sacramento

In 2014 Mashariki co-founded meetup group, Black Humanists and Non-believers of Sacramento. The meetup group serves as an outreach and educational community group to provide a supportive and judgement free environment for African-American/Black non-believers, humanists, atheists, agnostics and skeptics. The group is also open to those questioning their religious beliefs and are seeking information on atheism/humanism/etc. On a broader level, the group also collaborates with the general freethought community via social and activist activities.

Mashariki is a native California girl, having lived in Sacramento her my entire life. She graduated from Cal State University- Sacramento in 2008 with a B.A. in Economics. She is a Certified Government Auditing Professional and also a member of the Academic Relations Committee with the Institute of Internal Auditors, Sacramento Chapter.